Financial Times: Britain's EU exit could lead to banking exodus

Some Wall Street banks are drawing up preliminary plans that include moving some of their London-based operations to Ireland to deal with the possible scenario of Britain leaving the European Union, the Financial Times reported on Sunday, citing people familiar with the situation.

Citigroup Inc (C.N), Morgan Stanley (MS.N) and Bank of America Corp (BAC.N) are considering Ireland as an alternative location for some of their European activities if they need to move them out of the UK, according to people familiar with the banks, the Financial Times reported.

The FT reported that the plans were at a very early stage.

Bank of America and Morgan Stanley declined to comment on the article. Citigroup could not immediately be reached for comment outside regular working hours.

British Prime Minister David Cameron has vowed to conduct a referendum on a renegotiated EU membership if the Conservative party is re-elected in 2015. This possibility has raised fears that the world's sixth-largest economy could quit the club it joined in 1973.

The situation worries many in the City of London, the financial centre that accounts for roughly one-tenth of the British economy.

Comments

As usual EU propaganda strikes again. Anything to put fear into the British population about leaving the EU Mafia. However I have first hand information that at least one of the biggist US banks is leaving Europe completely. So much for just leaving the UK, its dumping the whole EU!!

The FT, who are rabidly pro Europe, would be an excellent source for such a scare story. They do not go on to say the problems Ireland would have if the UK were to leave the EU and therefore the unlikelihood of this arising. Frankfurt, possibly, Dublin no chance.

The UK was the Eurozones largest export market yet again, are the really going to close down trading links to their biggest market place? Ms Merkel always looks out for Germany first, the Eurozone 2nd & the EU 3rd.